Deeplinks Blog posts about Coders' Rights Project

For the past three years, EFF has organized the D(EFF)CONtest to highlight the work of supporters who advocate for EFF’s work and inspire others to become supporters of digital civil liberties too. We’re always looking for ways to make an impact with this contest, and so this year, we’re trying something a little different.

The Electronic Frontier Foundation is back in Austin, TX for South by Southwest (SXSW)! EFF is the world's foremost defender of online civil liberties, so it's only natural that we have boots on the ground at perhaps the most popular showcase of Internet innovation ever. For 23 years, EFF has been uniquely suited to protecting your digital freedom by blending the expertise of lawyers, activists, technologists, and policy analysts to fight for the users. Whether advocating for software patent reform, defending location privacy, uncovering information about domestic drones, or joining forces with international activists to protect free expression, EFF has your back as we continue into the next stage of technology.

In the wake of social justice activist Aaron Swartz's tragic death, Internet users around the country are taking a hard look at the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA), the federal anti-hacking law. As we've noted, the CFAA has lots of problems. In this three-part series, we'll explain these problems in detail and why they need to be fixed. For more details about our proposal for CFAA reform, seepart 2 and part 3.

Last week the Librarian of Congress issued his final decision (pdf) limiting copyright owners’ ability to sue you for making full use of the works you buy. The short version: it’s a mixed bag. On one hand, the Librarian looked to the future, broadening existing exemptions for extracting clips from DVDs to include clips from movies distributed online, as well. At the same time, the Librarian refused to expand an exemption for "jailbreaking" smartphones to include the smartphone’s cousin, the tablet, even though there is little practical difference between the two devices. Equally illogically, the Librarian refused to grant an exemption for jailbreaking video game consoles.

We at the Electronic Frontier Foundation would like to thank everyone who took a moment to support our work this summer with a donation, a kind word, a name drop in your presentation, or a stop at an EFF talk at the Black Hat USA, Security BSidesLV, and DEF CON conferences in Las Vegas. We appreciate you stepping forward to recognize that there is a continuing battle to protect not only Coders' Rights, but online freedom for everyone. It's people like you that are helping EFF stem the tide of eroding civil liberties.